Japan’s decision to lower or eliminate tariffs on rice, pork and beef may end up giving the prime minister a headache as he tries to get the trade accord through Parliament.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership may not be a done deal, but Australia cannot avoid the realities of the cut-throat business of international capital, trade and investment.
Amy Auster, Australian Centre for Financial Studies
Trade minister Andrew Robb must now “sell” the benefits of the Trans-Pacific Partnership - he could do worse than to concentrate on how our services sector will gain.
Before the last round of negotiations, only a handful of issues remained in the way of concluding the TPP. A potential deal-breaker for Australia was intellectual property protections for biologics.
The US sealed a deal with Japan, Australia and nine other countries on the biggest trade deal since the WTO was founded in 1995. But no time for champagne just yet, a few obstacles remain.
Disputes over intellectual property and car parts are emerging as last-minute hurdles as negotiators race to complete the Trans-Pacific Partnership ahead of elections.
Over the next few weeks, the trade minister will be under intense pressure to renege on the government’s commitment to reject anything in the Trans Pacific Partnership that could undermine the PBS.
Japanese negotiators in Maui appear to be bending to American pressure to accept more US rice imports. The flood of grain, local farmers say, will end their way of life.
Events in Washington this week on the proposed historic 12-member Trans-Pacific trade agreement have had all the key elements of a Shakespearean tragedy. A resolute, noble and well-intentioned ruler (played…
Seven rounds of negotiations for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership have already taken place with virtually no public debate. The next round of negotiations begins today in Kyoto, Japan.
Washington is in the midst of a heated debate over President Obama’s proposed Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement. It certainly has created some unorthodox political bedfellows. The president is…
Research Fellow, NHMRC Centre for Research Excellence in the Social Determinants of Health Equity, School of Regulation and Global Governance, Australian National University